🏏 Cricket World Cup 2023: Match #16: New Zealand vs Afghanistan🏏

🏏 Cricket World Cup 2023: Match #16: New Zealand vs Afghanistan 🏏

In this 2023 World Cup, minnows are monarchs, and mighty teams are reeling under miserable hammering!!

A topsy-turvy journey for many teams!!

The Black caps will come into the game with three comprehensive wins, while Afghanistan will be riding high on confidence following their victory over defending champions England in the last match.

New Zealand will be going up against Afghanistan in match no. 16 of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. The Black Caps are currently in second place on the points table behind hosts India and have won all three matches so far in the tournament.

However, the Kiwis will miss the services of their regular skipper Kane Williamson, who fractured his thumb in the last match against Bangladesh after returning to international cricket from a major knee injury. Opener Will Young, who scored a fifty against the Netherlands earlier this month in the World Cup 2023 in Hyderabad, should be coming in to replace Williamson in the playing 11.

New Zealand have dominated the proceedings so far, winning both of their matches and sitting in second position, while Afghanistan has won one of its three games so far and is sixth in the rankings.

New Zealand played against Bangladesh in their last match, where New Zealand won the toss and elected to bowl.

Bangladesh did not start well, losing their first wicket on the very first ball. It was the experienced duo of Mushfiqur Rahim and Shakib Al Hasan who scored important runs after the failure of the top order. They were only able to post 245 runs on the board.

New Zealand lost an early wicket as well, but had two brilliant partnerships back to back, due to which they easily cruised ahead to win the match by eight wickets.

Afghanistan squared off against England in their last match, where England won the toss and elected to field. Afghanistan was off to a fantastic start, and Gurbaz dominated the proceedings with his knock of 80.

Tag Credit: Sutapasima

These two teams have played 2 games against each other in this format so far, and New Zealand won both of those matches against Afghanistan. A good game is anticipated here between them.

Pitch Report:

The MA Chidambaram Stadium’s surface is known for providing assistance to both batters as well as bowlers. It is generally dry and provides grip for spinners. The pitch tends to slow down a bit towards the later half of the game which makes it difficult for batting in the second innings. Winning the toss and batting first would be an ideal choice at this ground.

Average 1st innings score:

The average first-innings score on this wicket is 247 runs.

Record of chasing teams:

The team batting second doesn’t enjoy good records here. They have a winning percentage of 35 on this track.

Probable XIs:

New Zealand: Devon Conway, Rachin Ravindra, Kane Williamson ©, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Latham (wk), Glenn Phillips, Mark Chapman, Mitchell Santner, Matt Henry, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult

Afghanistan: Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Ibrahim Zadran, Rahmat Shah, Hashmatullah Shahidi ©, Mohammad Nabi, Ikram Alikhil (wk), Azmatullah Omarzai, Rashid Khan, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Naveen-ul-Haq

Devon Conway is a left-handed batsman from New Zealand. He has hammered 229 runs in this tournament so far and can play a crucial role in this match as well.

Mitchell Santner is a left-handed batsman and left-arm orthodox spinner from New Zealand. He has marked 36 runs and picked up 9 wickets in this tournament so far. He will be among the essential picks for this match.

Rachin Ravindra is a left-handed batsman and left-arm orthodox spinner from New Zealand. He has stacked 183 runs and took 2 wickets in this tournament so far. He will be hoping to make a huge impact here.

Rashid-Khan is a right-handed batsman and right-arm leg-break bowler from Afghanistan. He has marked 48 runs and grabbed 3 wickets in this tournament so far. He will be eyeing a good performance here as well.

Playing for the country is a huge privilege, let alone captaining it, but the circumstances have been such for New Zealand that crises have come on a conveyor belt. Luckily, though, there can only be so many of them. Is Kane Williamson injured again? Here, bring Will Young who'd just made way. Here, give this captaincy hat back to Latham who had just taken it off. It seems like New Zealand have had an answer to everything this World Cup but what they are coming up next can be a different kettle of fish altogether.

Afghanistan have arrived in Chennai, not as an army but as a bit of a lion-tamer. Just the other day, they ran rings around England, totally outplaying a team that's set the pace of ODIs for the better part of a decade now and has come in this edition to do some of the same, if not "defend" anything. The pitch here in Chennai is going to be an accomplice again and nothing less than more wins is going to do it for them. Captain Hashmatullah Shahidi has already promised "more positive cricket" and how New Zealand's perfect streak rifles through a reinvigorated opposition, and in conditions favorable to the latter, will make for a very watchable battle.

What to expect: A good crowd, first of all. Afghanistan's games have been well-attended so far, and expect more of the same for this match that follows the highs of beating England.

It will be a new surface for this game, pitch #6 to be particular, which is again expected to hold up better than the India-Australia game and will bring short and long boundaries into play.

It's set to be a typically hot day in Chennai, with highs of 32 degrees, which will feel more like 38. Both the World Cup games so far here have been won by sides batting second, but that said, it wasn't such an easy run-chase for New Zealand the last time around with little or no dew in attendance.

Team Watch

New Zealand

With Kane Williamson unavailable owing to an "undisplaced fracture" in his left thumb, Will Young will slot right back in his place. Tim Southee is fit and waiting on the sidelines, but there's little reason to rotate the bowlers in this match, given the ample rest in the lead-up.

Tactics & Strategy

Afghanistan's win the other night was built on a century-long opening stand between Ibrahim Zadran & Rahmanullah Gurbaz. It was the third century stand between the pair in ODIs this year, behind only India's Shubman Gill and Rohit Sharma. But both the openers are susceptible against left-arm quicks; they have each been dismissed four times since the start of 2021 and score their runs at far less than run-a-ball. That makes Trent Boult a key bowler to survive against.

Afghanistan

Barring last-minute injuries, Afghanistan are expected to play the same team that got them over the line against England in Delhi. Rahmanullah Gurbaz, their leading run-getter this tournament, copped a demerit point for slamming his bat on the boundary rope and a chair after his dismissal in the last game but since it was his first offence in a 24-month period, he's not an immediate risk for suspension.

Tactics & Strategy

Against England, Mohammad Nabi dismissed two left-handers. New Zealand could possibly feature five left-handers in their top eight, making Nabi a crucial bowler in the scheme of things.

Did you know?

- New Zealand have won both their World Cup encounters against Afghanistan so far. The last time these two sides met in WC in Taunton in 2019, Ferguson picked up 4/37.

- Afghanistan ended a 14-match losing streak in World Cups by beating England

- New Zealand are unbeaten in the last six completed ODIs in Asia. One of those games was played in Pakistan, two in Bangladesh and three in India.

Thanks for the tag Madhu.

May the best team win.

Cheers..

In a span of three days, underdogs have ruled the roost twice – Afghanistan took down the defending champions, England, first up and then the Netherlands choked South Africa yesterday. That has opened up the World Cup nicely and has also proved that no matter how strong a team you are, there’s only a minimal margin of error in terms of execution. Today, resilient Afghanistan take on high-flying New Zealand at Chepauk and we bid you all a warm welcome to our live coverage. The Kiwis are off to a commanding start with three wins in three games and have all their bases covered. Meanwhile, Afghanistan, after a gloomy start to their campaign with two losses in a row, have risen in the face of adversity!